The purpose of this document1 is to provide FAO’s past, current and prospective new donors with a brief update of FAO’s emergency programme in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPR Korea) during the past 12 months and to request financial support for up to eight operations being initiated as ‘concepts’ – each with the potential to be developed into full project proposals. This document is divided into three parts:

Part 1 revisits the 2007 the programme submission of the Special Emergency Programmes Service (TCES) for resource mobilization when the annual appeal was launched in October 2006 with meetings in Beijing, Seoul and Pyongyang; and the subsequent responses received.

Part 2 provides an update on the agricultural situation in DPR Korea during the past year, in the context of a slow and gradual recovery for crop production in the past six seasons.

Part 3 presents the 2008 programme ‘concepts’, as developed in conjunction with FAO’s line ministry partners: Agriculture, Lands and Environmental Protection, Forestry and Fisheries.

The Annex is an itemized compilation of recently completed and ongoing FAO projects.